Hlas column: As is the Norm, Parker's defense sparkled

MIAMI - Appearances, it has been noted, can be deceiving.

If you saw and only saw Norm Parker over the last week in Miami, you'd ask how that poor soul have the strength to continue coaching at a high level.

The 68-year-old Iowa defensive coordinator is using a wheelchair a lot now because of diabetes' effects on his body. He walks slowly, and not easily. He needed help getting up to a podium when it was the Iowa defense's day at an Orange Bowl press conference. To be blunt, he looked feeble.

But if you listened to Parker in the last week, you heard someone who was just as alive as anyone in Miami, who sounded excited and kind of even giddy by the task of trying to stop Georgia Tech's triple-option offense.

This challenge was something out of the norm, forgive the pun. And Norm threw himself at it with zest.

Several days ago, Hawkeyes radio analyst Ed Podolak told me he felt a lot more confident in Iowa's chances of succeeding against Georgia Tech's offense because it had a few weeks to prepare for it, and because Parker had dealt with that style of offense many times in his day. It was true, and it mattered.

Tuesday night, in the glow of Iowa's 24-14 victory over Georgia Tech, Orange Bowl MVP Adrian Clayborn passed the credit for the Hawkeyes' defensive dominance to coaching.

“I would just say Norm Parker,” Clayborn said. “He put together a great plan for us, and we executed it. That's pretty much the reason why we stopped it. I mean, without Coach Parker we wouldn't have been able to work our blocks and get off and make tackles.”

Almost three weeks ago in Iowa City, Parker said “There are very few guys that can come out as juniors and make it (in the NFL),” Parker said. “The guys that can do it are usually the skill guys. Those guys that it takes strength and power and learned things, it's hard to do.”

Clayborn, a junior defensive end, announced three days later that he was staying at Iowa for his senior season. Was it because of Parker's words, at least partly? We don't know. But we do know and have long known Hawkeye defenders believe in their coordinator.

So does Kirk Ferentz, who has had Parker as his only defensive supervisor since becoming Iowa's head coach 11 years ago.

“I think I walked into Norm's office probably three and a half weeks now, maybe four, somewhere in that ballpark,” Ferentz said after Iowa held the Yellow Jackets to a paltry 155 yards Tuesday. “You know, it struck me. I walked out and he was talking about the option, how they used to play it all the time in spring practice, preseason camp and all season long in the ‘60s and ‘70s.

“And a couple years ago everybody thought Norm was too old. Now maybe it's good we had that wisdom. It seems no matter who we play, he gets our defense ready.”

Clayborn's staying put, and insisted after Tuesday's game that his decision wouldn't waver despite

 creating another big chunk of good NFL-audition tape.

“I'm here for the long haul,” said Clayborn. “I'm going into my fifth season as a senior, and I'll be back with the Hawks.”

“He's shooting for national awards now,” Ferentz said. “That was a little prelim.”

What kind of havoc could Clayborn and his defensive partners cause later this year? Only two starters on the whole defense - excellent linebackers A.J. Edds and Pat Angerer - depart for sure, and cornerback Amari Spievey sounds like an early-entrant into the NFL draft.

That leaves a lot of really fine players, though, including the entire front four that Clayborn anchors.

In the Iowa locker room after the game, junior defensive tackle Christian Ballard looked at the statistics packet and couldn't believe it even though he was a contributor.

“That's it?” Ballard exclaimed. “A hundred and fifty-five yards? That's crazy.”

Ballard's explanation: “We just flew around, and we played disciplined football.”

They can go together, if you have the right flight instructor. Iowa does.

Parker has a hard time walking these days. But what he has between his ears clearly is in great operating condition.